Micheál Martin
Cork South-Central · Fianna Fáil · Ireland
“At the beginning of April, the Government approved the establishment of the Cork city futures group to guide development of Cork city for the future.”
“We have to have a budget that reflects the need to sustain that level of work in our economy so that people will have access to jobs. The AI issue is causing a lot of concern. I take heart from the investment announced by Intel this week, which will be AI-propelled, actually.”
“Dublin City Council is progressing the establishment of this new legal entity, in line with the timelines laid out in the roadmap; a ten-year integrated area strategy for Dublin city centre to optimise funding and investment and tackle vacancy and dereliction; and accelerated delivery of landmark capital projects in the city centre throug…”
“I propose to take Questions Nos. 15 to 30, inclusive, together. This will be a long answer because there is one task group and one futures group.”
“I think Deputy Hayes was being a bit petty, if that is the word I am looking for, in what he said about Spain. Well, using the word "petty" might be a bit uncharitable today. It is more a Spain is more vociferous than us kind of thing. We have worked very well together on the Middle East. It is a very serious issue.”
“A dedicated body, to be known as The Cork City Futures Group, will work to unlock the city’s full economic, cultural and academic potential, alongside further investment, innovation and infrastructure. I think people are familiar with the terms of reference.”
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“In some cases, had the Royal Ulster Constabulary, RUC, or An Garda Síochána been alerted by the British Army to what it knew was happening, people could have been rescued from the Provisional IRA gangs that were torturing and murdering them. While the activities of Stakeknife have dominated headlines, the full report also outlines the important findings of Operations Mizzenmast and Turma. Mizzenmast is an independent police investigation into the murder of Jean Smyth-Campbell who was tragically shot dead in a car in west Belfast in 1972. It uncovered significant information regarding the killing of Ms Smyth-Campbell that had been missed by previous investigations.”
“The Kenova investigation extensively documents the fact that MI5 had sight of Stakeknife’s role within the Provisional IRA and its internal security unit and was involved from the outset in briefing Stakeknife through the force research unit of the British Army. The report details instances where murders "were not prevented or investigated when they could and should have been". What we see is a profound failure where, in the report's own words: Time and again, it would appear that protecting the agent outweighed protecting the life of a victim or protecting the right of their families to seek justice for the crimes committed against their loved ones.”
“It was a scourge on all communities, including those communities it falsely claimed to protect. More than 25 years after the Good Friday Agreement, it is staggering, as the investigators state, that the "republican leadership have failed to acknowledge and apologise for PIRA's murderous activities and the intimidation of families". In fact, things have reached the extreme position where public representatives and figures honour the Provisional IRA but launch legal cases against anyone who points to the vicious crimes that were committed. As utterly abhorrent and shocking is the British Army’s knowledge of Provisional IRA’s activities.”
“The details uncovered by the investigation are harrowing, pointing towards shocking acts by the Provisional IRA, including "torture, inhumane and degrading treatment and murder", to quote from the Kenova report. The investigators further note: "These assaults and human rights violations were perpetrated to intimidate and subjugate the community." To intimidate and subjugate the nationalist and republican communities across the North was the Provisional IRA's intent and that of those who endorsed the Provisional IRA-Sinn Féin. That was the Provisional IRA's practice. No amount of aggressive revisionist history from its supporters will ever erase its crimes against its own community. It is widely accepted that the Provisional IRA was responsible for over 1,700 deaths in Northern Ireland.”
“The identity of Stakeknife is clear to everybody here and I have previously stated that the agent should be officially named by the United Kingdom Government. Particularly because of his close relationship with those who like to refer to themselves as the republican movement, it is widely known that Stakeknife was Freddie Scappaticci. He was recruited by the British Army, with which he worked between the late 1970s and 1990s. He was a prized informant and during this period, the British Army dedicated a 24-hour phone line within its intelligence section to his calls. Throughout this time, Stakeknife was implicated in what were by any measure "grotesque [and] serious" crimes committed for and with the Provisional IRA. This included 14 murders and the abductions of 15 individuals.”
“We should note that Kenova investigators worked to comply with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights and victim-led investigations. It is to the team's credit that its investigations earned the trust and support of many of those affected and have been recognised by families and victims groups as a paradigm for how independent, historical investigations can achieve real results. The Kenova report details at length an investigation into potential criminal offences committed by the long-time senior Provisional IRA member and British agent known as Stakeknife, as well as potential offences by members of the security forces in respect of Stakeknife and others connected to him.”
“The Kenova report is an important step in delivering truth and transparency to these families. Despite this, as I have said repeatedly, it has not yet received the attention it deserves. For this reason, I very much welcome today's discussion. To start, I express my appreciation to Jon Boutcher, Sir Iain Livingstone and the entire Kenova team for the work that led to this hugely significant report. Their investigation has followed over 12,000 lines of inquiry, taken thousands of statements and interviewed hundreds of people. They faced and had to overcome many hurdles to get at the facts outlined in the report. As commendable as the level of detail is the nature of their approach. The Government has consistently called for a victim-centred approach to legacy issues.”
“Many of the details are uncomfortable. They relate to a terrible period in the history of our island but my position, and that of my party and the Government as a whole, is that the past must not be hidden. It must not be allowed to be a forum where different groups present not just their own narrative on the past but also their own set of facts. Unfortunately, we have been unsuccessful in the past three decades in getting certain elements and organisations to be open and honest about the behaviour of their members and supporters. Governments must operate to a clear standard of openness and accountability. Investigations such as this are required because of the terrible impact of these crimes on victims and their families. They deserve our support and our recognition of how long they have been waiting to know the truth.”
“I will be sharing time with the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond. Ar an 19 Meán Fómhair, d'fhoilsigh Rialtas na hÉireann agus Rialtas na Breataine creatcháipéis maidir le hoidhreacht na dTrioblóidí. Bhí sé sin i gcomhréir lenár ngealltanas sa chlár Rialtais chun gníomh agus fócas marthanach a chur ar an dtuiscint agus na naisc atá ríthábhachtach chun síocháin agus athmhuintearas buan a chothú idir gach cearn dár n-oileán. Creidim go bhfuil síocháin agus athmhuintearas ar oileán na hÉireann bunaithe ar phlé oscailte agus macánta ar an am atá thart. Is cuid ríthábhachtach den chomhrá seo é an foilseachán a phléifidh muid inniu. The Operation Kenova report is the fruit of nearly a decade's work and compiles findings across Operations Kenova, Denton, Turma and Mizzenmast.”
“I just want to make a point about the northern distributor road. One of the most important companies in the country and in Europe, Apple, has 6,000 people employed in the northside. We are going to facilitate the people of the northside.”
“I spoke to the chief executive on the issue three weeks ago. I did not interrupt the Deputy. He has created a vision of doom and more doom. There has been huge investment and the northern distributor-----”
“There has been huge investment in the northside of Cork by this Government and the previous Government. There has been huge investment and regeneration in the Deputy's area, which he has ignored. We are progressing the elective hospital in Glanmire.”
“I will talk to the Minister about that, but I do not think we can resile from a fundamental issue facing us a society. The vapes, to me, are big tobacco's revenge after we substantively dealt with the tobacco issue. It came back around the corner with the vapes, which are doing real damage. I met Dr. Fauci a year ago and he outlined the damage to me in no uncertain terms.”
“I thank the Deputy and I understand where he is coming from to a degree, but the requirement for a licence to sell tobacco and nicotine inhaling products was enacted in December 2023 and it came into effect earlier this month. It follows on from a recommendation for a national tobacco control policy from Tobacco Free Ireland and it is designed to give an enforcement authority to the HSE's national environmental health service. We know tobacco kills one out of every two smokers and is responsible for about 4,500 deaths a year. We want to end tobacco consumption. Vapes, on other factors, are worse in terms of other impacts on public health. I know the Deputy is asking if there can be a differentiation between larger and smaller retailers.”
“I know. I am making the point about whether the view is that we keep on increasing, that we have no reviews or that we do not evaluate the system. We do need to stand back a bit. I spoke to a principal recently who said we need other forms of provision as well. We are bringing in school therapy for special schools through the national therapy service. In some continental schools, they have behavioural therapists which can facilitate integration in mainstream schools. Obviously, I cannot get into every individual school, but I hear what the Deputy is saying and will relate it back to the Department of Education and Youth. However, the numbers have gone up substantially again this year as a result of the allocation. There are individual school allocations then pertaining to the criteria of the NCSE too.”
“There is established industrial relations machinery to deal with disputes, be they local disputes in particular hospitals or national disputes, and I encourage all involved to refer this to the industrial relations process so that these issues can be addressed.”
“As I have outlined, we have given a huge funding allocation to An Garda Síochána and record numbers are going through Templemore. A total of 223 trainees entered in November, which was the largest intake since 2014. The total number of trainees to enter Templemore in 2025 was 794, which was the largest yearly total since 2018. A total of 215 trainees entered on Monday, 9 February. That is the third intake in a row where the numbers have exceeded 200. These candidates were all from the 2024 and 2025 recruitment campaigns, so we will diaidh ar ndiaidh, gradually, allocate more gardaí around the country as they come through Templemore. A lot of progress has been made and we will continue to make progress. Offaly has been mentioned and the Deputy mentioned Tipperary. We will get around to the country in terms of the further allocations.”
“The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, can elaborate on this in more detail but, fundamentally, we are not where we want to be in terms of mental health. I accept that but we have made a lot of progress over the past couple of years.”
“In my view, institutionalisation was the great stain historically on Irish mental healthcare. Without question, we over-institutionalised in the past. Over the past 40 years, we have substantially deinstitutionalised mental healthcare from the old-type buildings and have put more emphasis on primary care and community-based mental healthcare. I accept we have a lot more progress to make and a lot more to do but a lot of progress has been made, particularly forensic medicine in terms of the new investment in Portrane. That is a very high-quality centre - of that there is no doubt. Further funding is going to that centre to increase its capacity in terms of its intensive care. In addition to that, a lot of work has been done in CAMHS and community health in a whole range of strands.”
“We are not walking away from the issue but, equally, it cannot all fall on Government either and the industry has obligations too, so we will engage with the industry and endeavour to see whether we can land this in a zone that both can live with. More importantly, it is about ensuring that the people who are suffering can have some security around their homes and businesses.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising a very important issue. There was a meeting this morning of the Cabinet subcommittee on evaluating Storm Chandra. We will deal further with the issue of insurance but there needs to be a balanced, combined approach between the insurance industry and the State. It involves the investment the State is making in a quite significant number of flood relief programmes and the degree to which those flood relief programmes should also impact future insurance, which sometimes can be problematic in the aftermath of the completion of such flood review schemes. Work is under way.”
“I will talk to the Commissioner about that because, as I said earlier, record numbers are coming through Templemore - the highest number in a long time this year alone. Hopefully, we can continue that and get them out.”
“I accept the issues that have been raised by the Deputy. Ten recent break-ins seems to be a fairly high number. I will engage with the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration and the Garda Commissioner in respect of maybe specific actions to stem the tide there and to get to the bottom of what is going on in terms of that level of that particular type of crime. We will also make representations in terms of the allocation of gardaí. As I said earlier, the Commissioner prioritised city centres in Dublin in particular, Cork, Limerick and Waterford and while it is no consolation to the Deputy, the impact has been quite significant in terms of public perception of safety and security. Clearly, we want to get around the entire country and I hear what the Deputy is saying. If Offaly has received nothing, its turn must come.”
“Let us try to share the problem now. If it had not been signed yesterday, there would be no service. We have to try to work within that constraint. There was one tenderer to my knowledge. The Minister does not get involved in the tendering negotiations. He cannot. I presume the Deputy approves of that in the sense that we do not get involved with companies, tendering processes and all of that. The fact that there was one tenderer was a problem. We are not satisfied with the outcome . We would have preferred the retention of the afternoon flight and the plane remaining overnight in Donegal. Substantial money is being allocated to the public service obligation, PSO. My understanding is that it is the only PSO.”
“How we deploy to the maximum optimum levels is important. Ultimately, this is an operational matter for the Commissioner but more coming gardaí coming through will mean greater allocations.”
“In the budget, about €2.74 billion was allocated to the Garda in the recent budget. Within that is enough money for about 1,000 new gardaí, 200 more Garda staff and a doubling of the Garda Reserve to more than 600 this year. A total of 223 trainees entered Templemore in November. That is the largest intake to Templemore since 2014. That brought the total number of trainees to enter Templemore to 794 in 2025, which is the largest yearly total since 2018. In other words, we have to get more recruits through Templemore. That is happening. A total of 215 went in on 9 February. This is the third intake in a row where the numbers have exceeded 200. We are making real progress. The Commissioner has decided to allocate large numbers to certain locations. This has had a huge impact. We will get there, but people are going to have to be patient.”
“I am familiar with the issue. I will engage with the Minister for public expenditure on this in order to see where we are. The issue of CIÉ pensions needs to be sorted as well. My understanding is that we are close to getting that one resolved. I will see where we are in respect of the An Post and Eir pensions.”
“The Stardust fire was a national tragedy that has left an enduring legacy of pain for the country, particularly the people of north Dublin and the families of the 48 young people who were tragically killed. They suffered a terrible loss, and there has been a lasting impact on the survivors who were injured in the fire. Following the State apology and engagement with the legal representatives of the families, the Government approved a two-phased approach to redress arrangements. Phase 1 involved the establishment of a €24 million ex gratia redress scheme for the families of the 48 victims of the fire. That was developed in consultation and agreement with the families' legal representatives and provided for a single, non-scaled ex gratia payment of €500,000 to be made to the families concerned in respect of each of the 48 victims.”
“It is very serious. I spoke to the Attorney General about this yesterday. Up to 62 cases have to be looked at. We were only briefed on Monday evening, again due to legal constraints in terms of how it can be shared. We will have to deal with that, yes, but the Deputy should please not trot out reprehensible comments about people's motivations. That is just wrong.”
“It is a serious report. I regret the propagandistic politicking the Deputy has just engaged in on what is a serious issue for families and children. No report was sitting on the Minister's desk. The Deputy knows well there were legal injunctions on how this report would be handled. She knows well it was not sitting on the Minister's desk. Why did she say it was in that throwaway phrase, as though the Minister is callous and does not care? Why does she do that? Is there any sincerity in her position? I regard this report as serious.”
“I hear the Deputy loud and clear about keeping the project alive. As I said earlier, we should try to progress projects as far as we can. There are not endless sums of money for every road project at the one time but we can progress projects and I will talk to the Minister about this to see what the pressure on him is and what he is in a position to do. We certainly hear the Deputy loud and clear.”
“I think the Deputy said Kilkenny County Council is the lead council and we will engage with it on this. I do not have the full programme in front of me and I am not in a position to outline the specific details of the programme of funding the Minister will announce. I also note the Deputy's praise of the officials in Tipperary County Council. He clearly has a positive and constructive relationship with them on roads and so on. These roads have to be done. Therefore, anything we can do to get them through the statutory process, we should do. Otherwise it can go on forever. At least if we get to the planning permission stage, there is a clear map ahead. Often a lot of the delays are in the design and planning permitting stages of a project. I will talk to the Minister to see what we can do about this.”
“It will be next week. I could not agree more with the Deputy about the importance of road infrastructure. I always argue that the primary objective is road safety. When we did the motorways and so on, that contributed to the reduction of road fatalities and injuries on our roads. We have no issue there. I will talk to the Minister and ask him what his plans are for the N24. The Deputy said that a lot of money has already been spent and that approximately €9 million would get it through the statutory process over the next number of years. I will engage with the Minister on that. The human impact is key but, as the Deputy said, it is also economically important in terms of people, mobility, tourism, freight and the movement of goods and services. They are extremely important.”
“I thank the Deputy for his commitment and interest in this. Certainly, I will talk to the Minister and the Cabinet subcommittee dealing with this issue in terms of the hydrogen innovation fund, the network co-ordinator and the establishment of a hydrogen hub. There is a lot of potential here. We should be in earlier, and we should increase our research capacity in that field.”
“On the issue of tidal, I have been to Wales where I saw fairly experimental - or, certainly, embryonic - projects in place to harness tidal energy. There has been some research in Ringaskiddy in respect of that. If I am honest, however, it seems we are some years off that and off the use of hydrogen as well.”
“Already, people want guidelines to restrict solar. Solar is in its infancy, but it is moving very fast. Tremendous progress is being made with solar. There have been global issues with offshore, although I am confident that we can iron out the challenges the wind industry faces in developing offshore platforms. The grid is vital, as the Deputy said. Potentially, up to €18 billion has been agreed, although it could be €14 billion. We have given equity of €3.5 billion to EirGrid to leverage that funding to substantially increase the capacity of the grid to deal with this. More work needs to be done on the research side in respect of hydrogen. The Deputy is correct that caverns exist that have potential when it comes to storage.”
“I established a clearing house upon this Government entering office to bring the private sector in to talk to Departments and to hear the perspective of regulators in order that we could hear the perspective of those involved in the wind industry. The purpose of this was to try to accelerate matters and to look, generically, at what barriers there are and the issues holding us back in the generation of offshore wind in particular. I passionately believe we need to get offshore wind farms established - certainly, at least one or two - by 2030 or 2031. That is absolutely essential in order that we show people a clear and tangible pathway as to the journey we are on. We have made great progress on onshore but increasingly in the House and in public debate, we have mixed views about this. When I use the word "we", I mean society.”
“I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I am absolutely at one with him in terms of a commitment to investment in renewable energy. Ireland put a lot of eggs in that basket over the past decade and is continuing to do so. In 2023, Ireland was ranked second in the world in onshore wind energy generation. I am not too sure that is appreciated even in Ireland. We will continue to build on that. The programme for Government includes a commitment to 9 GW of onshore wind, 8 GW of solar energy and 5 GW of offshore wind by 2030. These are very challenging targets. On the question of hydrogen, some progress has been made, although there is a degree of scepticism as to the timeline for the realisation of the proposals around that. I will return to that.”
“Latin America should be on the Security Council. It should be expanded and reformed, but we cannot get reform. We support reform of the UN Security Council. That is a problem in itself. There is no sense of Ireland being a warmongering nation in any shape or form, nor do we have the capacity to be one. What we have capacity for is being professional peacekeepers, where we have made a significant contribution around the world. There has not been a peacekeeping mission sanctioned since 2014. The one in Lebanon is coming to an end at the behest of the Security Council. We are really restricting our capacity for peacekeeping by the composition and behaviour of the Security Council. That is a big issue which we cannot ignore.”
“-----ever since in a manner that has been respected around the world. The UN Security Council is a post-war creation and is ridiculously outdated. Five members of the Security Council do not represent the world any more. Africa should be on the Security Council.”
“It is because my party introduced the concept of neutrality during the Second World War that I have the self-confidence to deal with this and to be absolutely confident that this is not about ending military neutrality. I make that point more generally. We have evolved independent Irish foreign policy-----”
“We are the democratically elected people of this country. What is the problem? Do we not believe in parliamentary democracy? Parliamentary democracy is the cornerstone of one of the longest living democracies around the world, which happens to be Ireland. Maybe a bit more faith in ourselves and self-respect and self-esteem would go a long way to allay the propagandistic fears that have been articulated about this initiative.”
“When I was out in UNIFIL before Christmas, a lot of members of our Army were asking straightforward questions as to where they get the experience in the future of peacekeeping and what the next theatre is for Irish troops to have experience in peacekeeping. Will the US determine that? Will China determine that? When we were on the Security Council, we wanted to connect climate security and make it a core principle. Russia vetoed it. We nearly got there, but Russia vetoed it. In increasing times, we have been part of NATO peacekeeping missions. We have been part of European Union peacekeeping missions and we have been part of African Union-led peacekeeping missions. The key issue is the principle of peacekeeping. Why are we afraid in Dáil Éireann, with Seanad Éireann, to give ourselves the unrestricted authority to do that?”
“If the Deputy stands back, why should Russia have a veto on whether Irish peacekeepers participate in a peacekeeping mission or not? When I say a veto, it is very clear that Russia, geopolitically over the last two decades in particular, does not want UN peacekeeping forces in a lot of parts of the world. If the Deputy takes Niger, Mali and all those areas in the Sahel, what has the Wagner Group been doing there for quite some time and Russia? They have been facilitating coup d'états , trying to exploit the natural resources of those countries in return for protecting the elites who perpetrated a coup d'état . Is that the country that should determine whether Ireland participates in a peacekeeping mission or not? The US has decided that the UN should not support the peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL.”
“We do not intend to be. We are not a member of NATO, fundamentally. The triple lock relates to our participation in peacekeeping missions. We want to continue the tradition of Irish participation in peacekeeping missions. It has been a very noble one. It is probably one of the defining qualities of Irish foreign policy. People accept our bona fides in the international field, whether it is military peacekeeping or in civilian peace monitoring, contributions to conflict resolution and participation in multilateral fora from the United Nations, to the African Union and European Union, but the world has changed dramatically. I know the Deputy said the Russian invasion of Ukraine was wrong. I would respectfully say it was far more than wrong. It was appalling, horrific and is having horrific consequences.”
“I am not blaming her for anything. I am simply saying what she is coming up with is not that effective or does not really have the capacity to solve the housing problem. There needs to be more scrutiny of what her party is coming up with.”
“The Deputy has not explained how it would deal with the existing Land Development Agency, which we have now provided billions for in terms of doing the work that it has to do. It has a pipeline of about 11,000 to 12,000 houses. Her proposals are fairly weak, if I am honest, in terms of dealing with the thing”
“I think that is a real issue in terms of getting supply. I did not interrupt the Deputy. She and her party have a habit of continuing interrupting when we try to respond to their points. I have no issue with a debate in the House, but I am making valid points. I have read her party's housing construction policy. In my view, it is not going to add value in the next two to three years. It could not.”
“-----and make assertions about the bona fides of people on this side of the House, which I think are unworthy. Everybody in this House wants to resolve the housing crisis. We have a clear view that it has to be a combination of public and private sector investment.”
“That is another fundamental difference. The Department of Finance says we need about €20 billion a year to get to 50,000 to 60,000 houses per annum. We have a clear pathway to doing that. We need private sector investment to create additional supply. Does the Deputy accept that or does she not? Her spokesperson does not seem to accept it.”